Candy Reagan, columnist

(2001 articles will be added to this directory as they develop.)

Monday, September 4, 2000 -- Weekend has new life with return of football season (Candy Reagan) Last week seemed eternal. The weekend couldn’t get here fast enough for me and many other football fans.

Monday, August 28, 2000 -- NFL must take steps to curb injury problem (Candy Reagan): Talent won’t determine who wins the Super Bowl this season, nor will good coaching or strength of schedule. No, this year’s Super Bowl likely will be determined by injuries.

Monday, August 21, 2000 -- Now isn’t time for true Cowboys’ fans to panic (Candy Reagan) Don’t panic, Cowboys fans. Yes, the ’Pokes had a pitiful performance in all aspects of the Saturday night’s game against the Broncos, and thus far the defense hasn’t stopped anyone.

Monday, August 14, 2000 -- Former Dallas star’s lifestyle needs change in direction (Candy Reagan) Michael Irvin still hasn’t changed Regardless of whether or not the former Cowboys star receiver was using marijuana when he was arrested last week, the fact still remains that he was with a woman known to associate with drug dealers.

Monday, August 7, 2000 -- Football season brings fantasy games to life (Candy Reagan) Football is here again, and that means thousands of fans will be venturing into fantasyland. Last year was my inaugural trip, and now I’m hooked. Apparently, I’m not the only one. Fantasy games have cropped up all over the Internet — many of them free — and literally tens of thousands of people are playing.

Monday, July 31, 2000 -- Rangers’ season reduced to building for the future (Candy Reagan) If the Texas Rangers have any foolish notions that they can still make the playoffs, they ought to give them up now. This season’s division title hopes are over. But I’m glad to see Rangers’ management hasn’t given up on next season.

Monday, July 24, 2000 -- Whatever Williams decides, he’ll hurt Dallas offense (Candy Reagan) Erik Williams’ absence from training camp is a double-edged sword in the gut of the Dallas Cowboys. If he decides to retire, he leaves the Cowboys with a weakened offensive line.

Monday, July 17, 2000 -- Undrafted free agents should look elsewhere (Candy Reagan) Undrafted free agents are likely to have a rough time during Cowboys training camp this year.

Monday, July 10, 2000 -- Youth season brings out variety of experiences (Candy Reagan) The series on Little League that ran in this paper last week caused me to reflect on my own mostly positive experiences during my son’s first year in the Farm League.

Monday, July 3, 2000 -- Free agency crucial to San Antonio’s future (Candy Reagan) The NBA’s free agency began in earnest Saturday, and for the Houston Rockets and Dallas Mavericks that means an opportunity to strengthen their teams.

Monday, June 19, 2000 -- Rangers’ fortunes can turn on moment’s notice (Candy Reagan) I must admit to being a somewhat superstitious sports fan. Superstitions are part of sports — we’ve all heard the stories of lucky underwear, athletes who don’t wash their socks for months and various rituals that players go through before a game.

June 12 -- Player moves may heighten Cowboys’ rivalry with Redskins (Candy Reagan) The Sept. 18 Monday night matchup between the Dallas Cowboys and the Washington Redskins should be a well-hyped and much-anticipated battle between two fierce rivals.

June 5 -- Time was right for Cowboys to cut Deion loose (Candy Reagan) Deion Sanders became a free agent Friday and was immediately the talk of June free agency. Supposedly several teams are salivating over the possibility of adding “Primetime” to their lineups, with the Washington Redskins most likely to sign him.

May 29 -- Youth baseball brings big-time spring excitement (Candy Reagan) I’ve had the best spring baseball season of my life, and it has nothing to do with the Rangers’ May winning streak.

May 22 -- Even non-fan has to admire Tiger Woods (Candy Reagan) I’m not a big Tiger Woods fan, but even I have to admit that professional golf’s number one player is amazing. NOTE: for more news on Tiger Woods, visit www.tigertales.com - Ed.

May 15 -- Many readers think Cowboys should keep LB depth (Candy Reagan) Here is a special (Longer) version of my column especially for the internet site. - Candy Last week’s column suggesting the Cowboys trade a linebacker generated more response than I’ve gotten since last offseason when I suggested the Cowboys trade Michael Irvin. NOTE: for more Dallas Cowboys stories, visit cowboys.texnews.com - Ed.

May 8 -- Hard to see improvement in Texas pitching (Candy Reagan) So much for the Texas Rangers’ improved pitching. The pitchers look a lot like years past — a notch below really good ones.

May 1 -- No need for so much delay in NBA playoffs (Candy Reagan) The NBA playoffs are creeping along, and I do mean creeping.

April 24 -- Spurs appear far short of championship squad (Candy Reagan) Less than a year has passed since the San Antonio Spurs swept through the NBA playoffs en route to their first championship ever.

April 17 -- After questionable opening pick, Dallas did all right in draft (Candy Reagan) NOTE: For more Cowboys coverage, be sure to visit cowboys.texnews.com - Ed. So much for the Cowboys taking the best available player with their first pick in the NFL draft Saturday. They didn’t even take the best available cornerback.

April 10 -- What Dallas should and shouldn’t do in draft (Candy Reagan) NOTE: For more Cowboys coverage, be sure to visit cowboys.texnews.com - Ed. The NFL draft is less than a week away, and the big question for Cowboys fans is who will be the ’Pokes’ first pick?

March 27 -- Cowboys have had solid start to offseason (Candy Reagan) NOTE: For more Cowboys coverage, be sure to visit cowboys.texnews.com - Ed. Free agency in the NFL has taken a back seat to March Madness and Tiger Woods lately, but the Dallas Cowboys have quietly and methodically gone about accomplishing their free agency goals.

March 20 -- Some reasons to be proud and ashamed of in sports (Candy Reagan) Several stories this week reminded me that sports still has much to be proud of. On the other hand, several had me shaking my head and wondering why the sports world puts up with behavior that causes so much embarrassment and gives sports such a black eye.

March 13 -- Rodman forgot he was playing for NBA, not WWF (Candy Reagan) The Dennis Rodman/Dallas Mavericks experiment has officially ended, and we can only hope that Rodman’s career has too.

March 6 -- Tough to teach youth how to be aggressive and fair (Candy Reagan) Our soccer coach has the unenviable task of trying to teach his charges how to be aggressive and still play a clean, fair game.

Feb. 28 -- Did Rangers’ offseason moves improve team? (Candy Reagan) The Texas Rangers hit some home runs in the offseason — but they had a few strikeouts, too. And fans with aspirations of a World Series championship don’t like to see strikeouts. The Rangers started the offseason with the blockbuster trade that sent Juan Gonzalez to Detroit — a home run.

Feb. 21 -- Answering a few of Dallas’ free-agency questions (Candy Reagan) The frustrating aspect about free agency is that progress is slow, and zealous fans are often left wondering, “What’s going on?” It’s not exactly in Jerry Jones’ best interests to broadcast his plans, so in most cases, he keeps quiet.

Feb. 14 -- Cowboys aren’t same team that dominated ’90s (Candy Reagan) Free agency began with a bang Friday, and for the Dallas Cowboys, one fact is crystal clear — this isn’t the 1990s.

Feb. 7 -- Bests, worsts and surprises so far in NBA season (Candy Reagan) With the NBA season starting to get interesting — isn’t this about where we started last season? — here’s a look at some of my favorites and least favorites of the year so far.

Jan. 31 -- Campo was a good choice, if he acts like a good wife (Candy Reagan) If Dave Campo wants to be successful as head coach of the Dallas Cowboys, he needs to learn a lesson from women.

Jan. 24 -- Maybe Cuban can do for Mavs what Hicks has for Stars (Candy Reagan) Life is finally looking up for Dallas Mavericks fans. One of their own has bought the Mavericks, and maybe, finally, he can rescue this team from the management circus that has made it the laughing stock of the NBA.

Jan. 17 -- Rocker overblown; Marino blown out; and Cowboys’ coach (Candy Reagan) This whole John Rocker scandal is simply amazing. Since when is it so unusual for a professional athlete to say something totally stupid?

Jan. 10 -- I didn’t win fantasy league, but it was a lot of fun (Candy Reagan) The fantasy world I’ve been living in this football season came to an end last weekend. No, I don’t mean my delusions about the Cowboys and the Super Bowl. Those didn’t end until Sunday. I mean my fantasy football team.

Jan. 3 -- We finally see what parity means in NFL (Candy Reagan) So this is what parity’s like in the NFL? I hope the NFL is happy because I think it stinks. For years now fans have watched the salary cap and free agency rob of teams of stars and drain teams of their depth for the sake of the illusive parity. We gritted our teeth and put up with it under some silly delusion that parity would actually be a good thing.

Dec. 20 -- Abilene High showed it could play with the best (Candy Reagan) The Abilene High Eagles were a very good football team this year, and if anyone doubts that, just take a look at the way the Class 5A state championship game ended.

Dec. 13 -- Internet is loaded with interesting questions (Candy Reagan) The Internet is full of sports opinion polls asking readers for their opinions on everything from who’s going to win the Super Bowl to which pro basketball player is more important to his team? As a huge fan of sports debating, I always enjoy reading the opinions of others. So here are a few of the questions from the past week, my response and the response of Internet viewers:

Dec. 6 -- AHS’ Warren made right call in going for it (Candy Reagan) Abilene High School fans will likely spend many an hour over the next few weeks sipping coffee and debating “the call.” And AHS football players will likely spend many a sleepless night reliving “the play.”

Nov. 22 -- Florida State’s Peter Warrick is no Randy Moss (Candy Reagan) I’d give my right arm if the Cowboys could somehow swing a deal to move up in the draft and nab Peter Warrick. He’s phenomenal. Warrick, the highly touted Florida State wide receiver, had another great game Saturday.

Nov. 15 -- Teams with losing records don’t fare well in playoffs (Candy Reagan) Here’s a somewhat interesting fact about the high school football playoffs that kicked off this past weekend: More than 70 teams statewide made the playoffs with records of 5-5 or worse. Seem strange? I certainly thought so.

Nov. 8 -- Defense, injuries have led to strange NFL season (Candy Reagan) The NFL has reached midseason and what a weird season it has been. The rash of injuries to key players, the rise in prominence of formerly obscure players and the return of good defense has made this one of those seasons that defies the imagination.

Nov.1 -- NBA season looks familiar for Texas teams (Candy Reagan) A sneak peek at the upcoming NBA season looks much like it has over the last decade. Hopes are high for Spurs and Rockets fans, but the most Mavericks fans can hope for is a top lottery pick in the next draft.

Oct. 25 -- Cowboys, Redskins could meet again in playoffs (Candy Reagan) The Cowboys needed a win against the Redskins Sunday in the worst way, and they got it. Let’s hope it doesn’t come back to haunt them. With Sunday’s victory, the Cowboys are tied with Washington for the division lead and have the head-to-head tiebreaker. A loss would have dropped them two games back, given them three losses against division foes, and made them long shots to win the division.

Oct. 18 -- It’s hard for parents to learn, too (Candy Reagan) If you’ve been out to the soccer field at Madison Middle School on a Saturday afternoon and heard a loud voice screaming instructions over the melee, that was probably me. I must confess, I am not a quiet sports fan.

Oct. 11 -- It’s about time NFL changed its absurd alignment (Candy Reagan) Finally the NFL’s owners have voted to do something about the league’s ridiculous divisions.

Oct. 4 -- Here’s one vote for Rangers to reach Series (Candy Reagan)You know your baseball team has had a pretty good year when: 1. It clinches the division with six games left in the regular season; 2. It is in the race for best record in the American League until a loss in the next to last game of the season; and 3. The question is not will a member of the team win the MVP, but which one will win the MVP?

Sept. 27 -- U.S. golfers became a team to win (Candy Reagan) I have to hand it to the American golfers playing in this weekend’s Ryder Cup. They even won me over.

Aug. 30 -- Some tips and a chance to beat Candy in fantasy football (Candy Reagan): Millions of football fans are living in fantasy worlds right now in more ways than one. Fans of the mediocre-to-good teams are living with the momentary illusion that their team is about to experience a wonderful season, ending in a trip to the Super Bowl. But we all know that only two of the 31 teams will make it. And one, of course, will be the Cowboys.

Aug. 23 -- Rangers look like they could finally win playoff series (Candy Reagan): Texas Rangers fans, looking for signs that the team might do more than make an early exit from the playoffs, found reason for hope this past week.

Aug. 16 -- Preseason NFL analysis is an inexact science (Candy Reagan): The Sporting News fumbled the ball with a recent assessment of the Dallas Cowboys’ offseason, as did a syndicated writer in this paper Sunday.

Aug. 2 -- Writers have no right to question Irvin as team player (Candy Reagan): What’s all the hubbub over Michael Irvin? I’m not surprised that Irvin was the focus of media questions during the first week of training camp. After all, his status with the club was one of the offseason’s hottest topics. But I am surprised that his role as a team player has come into question.

July 26 -- Can the Dallas Cowboys win the Super Bowl? (Candy Reagan): Dallas Cowboys training camp always brings a surge of optimism and rise in expectations to Cowboys’ fans.

July 19 -- Umpires have reason for animosity with MLB (Candy Reagan): Major League Baseball never learns. Bud Selig still doesn’t realize what a stupid mistake he made three years ago when he supported Roberto Alomar over the umpires. And now he’s ready to let the umps resign right in the middle of the pennant race.

July 12 -- U.S. win opens door for new breed of sports fan (Candy Reagan): Women’s World Cup Soccer lived up to its billing Saturday — and more. The crowd was great, the teams were great, the game was great, the ending was great, and the outcome was just what we all wanted.

July 5 -- Juan Gonzalez just now learning life isn’t fair (Candy Reagan): Juan Gonzalez needs to grow up. The Texas Rangers outfielder was upset last week because early voting indicated he would not be selected by fans for the All-Star game. He said if fans didn’t vote him in, then he would not play even if selected as a reserve by Yankees manager Joe Torre.

June 28 -- Robinson deserved Spurs’ title (Candy Reagan): In a perfect world, all sports fans would get to watch their favorite professional team win a championship.

June 21 -- Abilene mother's poem points out that all are all-stars (Candy Reagan): Youth baseball has drawn to a close in Abilene over the past week or so, and the various leagues have chosen their all-stars.

June 14 -- Cowboys’ saga with Sanders is finally at an end (Candy Reagan): The Deion Sanders saga appears to have finally been decided. Jerry Jones has said that he will attempt to restructure the contract of the Cowboys’ lame wonderboy.

June 7 -- It’s been one memorable week for Texas sports fans (Candy Reagan): Wow! The Dallas Stars are headed to the Stanley Cup finals; the San Antonio Spurs are headed to the NBA finals; and as of Sunday afternoon, the Rangers had won 10 of their last 11.

May 31 -- Rangers’ pitching looking woeful as ever (Candy Reagan): The Rangers started the season hoping for the best from a rather suspect group of pitchers, but who would have guessed the starting rotation would be making Major League Baseball’s record books?

May 24 -- Cowboys need hard-line stance with players involved with drugs (Candy Reagan): I’ve got a suggestion for Jerry Jones in his effort to keep drugs out of the Dallas Cowboys organization. Just say no.

May 17 -- Two problems could be solved if Lions traded Barry Sanders to Miami (Candy Reagan): The Miami Dolphins ought to trade four or five of their running backs and a few draft picks to the Detroit Lions for running back Barry Sanders.

May 10 -- Spurs might be better off if Duncan doesn’t win MVP (Candy Reagan): Jim Duncan deserves to be the NBA’s MVP, but I’m not so sure I want him to win it. Strange words, I know, from a longtime San Antonio Spurs fan, but I’m starting to feel a little bit of deja vu.

May 3 -- Deion’s toe, Lett offset Cowboys’ off-season improvement (Candy Reagan): Poor Jerry Jones. He must feel like he’s spinning his wheels about now. Jones, along with Dallas Cowboys Coach Chan Gailey, has worked hard this off-season to improve the Cowboys’ weaknesses and put together a team that can contend for the Super Bowl.

Apr. 26 -- There have been some great sports times recently despite Lett, Rodman (Candy Reagan): At first glance, the last couple of weeks have not been particularly good for professional sports. Leon Lett failed a drug test, Daryl Strawberry got caught with drugs, Scottie Pippen and now Rod Strickland were arrested for drunken driving, two NBA teammates got in a fist fight over a card game and Dennis Rodman can’t show up on time for practice.

Apr. 19 -- Teams will regret passing Williams (Candy Reagan): The draft of 1999 will obviously be remembered as the year of the quarterback, but I think Indianapolis, Philadelphia, Washington and maybe even Cincinnati will remember it for another reason.

Apr. 12 -- Local fans split on suggestion Cowboys should trade Irvin (Candy Reagan): The e-mails have come fast and furious in the two weeks since I suggested that the Cowboys trade Michael Irvin for a first-round draft pick.

Mar. 29 -- Adding Rocket gives Cowboys chance to trade Irvin (Candy Reagan): If the Cowboys manage to pull off a long-term deal with Rocket Ismail, they ought to seriously consider doing the unthinkable. Trade Michael Irvin.

Mar. 22 -- Hey, this March Madness stuff isn’t bad (Candy Reagan): For years now I have been intrigued by the effect of March Madness on men. Not that it takes a lot to get a grown man to spend hours in front of the television, but March Madness goes beyond that.

Mar. 8 -- Cowboys may need Aikman, Sanders to take cuts (Candy Reagan): Jerry Jones and Chan Gailey must be successful in free agency if the Dallas Cowboys are going to win another Super Bowl in the immediate future.

Mar. 1 -- Idiot ... genius ... which? (Candy Reagan): Dennis Rodman is a genius. Or is he an idiot? I have a difficult time telling the difference with him.